Robert Wood Johnson Foundation New Careers in Nursing Program Awards Grants to 55 Schools of Nursing to Provide Scholarships for Students in Accelerated Degree Programs

Scholarships, program support will aid second career nurses from groups underrepresented in nursing who are enrolled in accelerated degree programs.

PRINCETON, N.J., June 18, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) today announced the schools of nursing that have been selected to participate in RWJF's prestigious New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program (NCIN). During the 2012-2013 academic year, the schools will receive grants to support students in their accelerated baccalaureate and master's degree nursing programs, who are traditionally underrepresented in the field of nursing and are pursuing a second career in nursing. The NCIN Scholarship Program was launched in 2008 by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) to expand enrollment in accelerated degree programs in schools of nursing while increasing diversity in the nursing workforce.

"We need a well-educated, diverse nursing workforce to provide quality care for our changing patient population," said David Krol, MD, MPH, FAAP, program officer for NCIN, RWJF senior program officer and team director of the RWJF Human Capital portfolio. "NCIN is strengthening nursing education and helping to fill the pipeline with capable, culturally-competent nurses."

Schools receiving grants through NCIN provide scholarships directly to students from groups underrepresented in nursing or from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Students who receive the NCIN scholarships—in the amount of $10,000 each—have already earned a bachelor's degree in another field, and are making a career switch to nursing through accelerated nursing degree programs. These programs prepare students to pass the licensure exam required for all registered nurses in as little as 12-18 months and provide quicker routes to workforce eligibility than traditional programs.

Since 2008, the NCIN program has distributed 2,717 scholarships to students at more than 100 unique schools of nursing. This year, funding for 400 scholarships was granted to 55 schools of nursing.

Students also receive other supports to help them meet the demands of an accelerated degree program. All NCIN grantee schools are required to maintain a mentoring program for their scholars, and many offer a pre-entry immersion program to help scholars learn study, test-taking and other skills that will aid them in managing the challenges of the program.

"AACN is proud to collaborate with RWJF on this unique effort. NCIN scholars bring life experience that makes them exceptional, mature nursing candidates, and they represent the diverse, culturally-competent nursing workforce our nation needs," said AACN President Jane Kirschling, DNS, RN, FAAN. "NCIN provides the scholarship and support these students need to succeed in school, and thrive in the workforce."

In this fifth year of the program, the following schools were awarded grants:

Allen College
Ashland University
Bellarmine University
Boston College
California State University-Northridge
College of Mount St. Joseph
College of St. Scholastica
Columbia University
Coppin State University
Creighton University
DePaul University
Duke University
Duquesne University
Edgewood College
Fairleigh Dickinson University
Georgia Health Sciences University
Kent State University
Linfield College
Medical University of South Carolina
MidAmerica Nazarene University
Montana State University
Mount St. Mary's College
Nebraska Methodist College of Nursing and Allied Health
New Mexico State University
New York University
Norfolk State University
Oregon Health & Science University
Quinnipiac University
Rush University Medical Center
Saint Louis University
Samuel Merritt University
Southern Connecticut State University
Stony Brook University
SUNY Downstate
The George Washington University
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville
The University of Texas at El Paso
Thomas Jefferson University
University of California-UCLA
University of Delaware
University of Hawaii
University of Maryland, Baltimore
University of Massachusetts, Amherst
University of Miami
University of Michigan-Flint
University of Mississippi Medical Center
University of Missouri-Columbia
University of Nebraska Medical Center
University of Pennsylvania
University of Rochester School of Nursing
University of Tennessee Health Science Center
University of Wyoming
West Virginia University
Winston-Salem State University
Yale University

The 2010 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, recommends increasing the proportion of nurses with a baccalaureate degree or higher, and increasing the diversity of students to create a workforce prepared to meet the demands of diverse populations across the lifespan. The mission of the NCIN program is helping to advance those recommendations, enabling schools to expand student capacity in higher education, and encouraging more diversity.

By bringing more nurses into the profession at the baccalaureate and master's degree levels, the NCIN program also helps to address the nation's nurse faculty shortage. Data from the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration show that nurses entering the profession via baccalaureate programs are four times more likely than other nurses to pursue a graduate degree in nursing. This trend is reflected in the NCIN scholars, as 91 percent of the students receiving funding in the first three years of the program indicate a desire to advance their education to the master's and doctoral levels.

To find learn more about the NCIN program, visit www.newcareersinnursing.org.

About NCIN
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) joined with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) to create New Careers in Nursing: an RWJF Scholarship Program to help alleviate the nursing shortage and increase the diversity of nursing professionals. Through annual grants to schools of nursing, NCIN provides $10,000 scholarships to college graduates with degrees in other fields who wish to transition into nursing through an accelerated baccalaureate or master's nursing program. For more information, visit www.newcareersinnursing.org.

About RWJF
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation's largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to health and health care, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, measurable and timely change. For 40 years, the Foundation has brought experience, commitment and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, the Foundation expects to make a difference in your lifetime. For more information, visit www.rwjf.org.

About AACN
The American Association of Colleges of Nursing is the national voice for baccalaureate and graduate programs in nursing. Representing more than 700 member schools of nursing at public and private institutions nationwide, AACN's educational, research, governmental advocacy, data collection, publications and other programs work to establish quality standards for bachelor's and graduate degree nursing education, assist deans and directors to implement those standards, influence the nursing profession to improve health care, and promote public support of baccalaureate and graduate nursing education, research and practice. For more information, visit www.aacn.nche.edu.

SOURCE Robert Wood Johnson Foundation